Phrasal verb
dream up
Definition
phrasal verb. to invent a new idea, plan, or story, especially one that is very creative or unusual.
phrasal verb. to conceive or invent an idea, plan, or story through the use of imagination; often implies the result is elaborate, fanciful, or slightly unrealistic.
Examples
“She managed to dream up a great excuse for being late.”
“The marketing team needs to dream up a new campaign to attract younger customers before the summer starts.”
“It is difficult to imagine how the architect managed to dream up such a complex and gravity-defying structure using only basic materials.”
Examples
simple
“She managed to dream up a great excuse for being late.”
contextual
“The marketing team needs to dream up a new campaign to attract younger customers before the summer starts.”
complex
“It is difficult to imagine how the architect managed to dream up such a complex and gravity-defying structure using only basic materials.”
Usage
usually followed by a noun representing a creative product like a plan, scheme, or story.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'think of' or 'invent'; 'dream up' suggests a higher degree of imagination or even a touch of eccentricity in the thought process.
Pitfall
He dreamed up of a new machine.
He dreamed up a new machine.
the phrasal verb 'dream up' is transitive and takes a direct object without the extra preposition 'of'.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
dream + up + object
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/dream-up